


Provenance

by PunkHazard



Series: Atlantica [1]
Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Prohibition Era, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-31
Updated: 2014-12-31
Packaged: 2018-03-04 10:30:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3064487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PunkHazard/pseuds/PunkHazard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With Prohibition imminent, Stacker establishes himself in New York City's Chinatown, poised to take advantage of the city going dry. It's the summer of 1919, and he can't do it alone.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Provenance

**Author's Note:**

> set a couple years before atlantica proper!

Chinatown's young prince is exactly what Stacker expects-- a charismatic and intelligent man, skilled at negotiation, running his establishments with a firm but even hand. Wei Liu looks at Pentecost with suspicion but treats him with respect, his own people obviously holding him in high regard. The guards outside his office are intimidating in size, but no discernable threat to Stacker.

"Mr. Pentecost," Liu says politely as he stands, shifting his seat back and extending his hand over his desk, "welcome back to the city."

Four other men in the office exude the easy confidence of trained soldiers, all of them watching Stacker carefully. It's more like one man and three boys, the former tall, lean and built, edges of his tattoo sleeves visible on his arms just under his rolled-up cuffs. Ye Wuming has been Liu's right hand for years now; locals call him Shadow King for his dealings with Hannibal Chau, far more involved as he is than his employer. 

As for the triplets, Stacker's heard of them, probably as much as they've heard of him. The Weis were notoriously brilliant in the underground arenas, and after a flash-fire first year, were quickly snapped up by Liu and folded into his operation. That they'd managed to work their way to his private security contingent in such a short amount of time doesn't surprise him-- tenacity and ambition can make up for a lot of shortcomings.

Stacker shakes Liu's hand, then backs away when Ye moves forward, prompting him to raise his arms, then pats him down. "My associates," Liu explains, sounding not at all apologetic, "you can understand why they might be concerned for my safety."

"You know why I'm here," Stacker says, straightening his jacket as he sits, "and why I've come to you."

"I'll need more details," Liu answers, careful to temper expectations as he settles into his own seat, "but I'm not sure I have what you need, Mr. Pentecost."

"All I ask is space, and freedom to move in your territory." Stacker's eyes flicker to the door when the triplet standing by it moves to join his brothers near the couch, then he looks back to Liu. "You'll be compensated for both."

Nodding, Liu pulls the letter in front of him closer. "I can give you space and freedom," he says, "but the connections you'll need for this venture... are something neither of us have." 

"We've got cathouses and opium dens," Ye clarifies, "not a whole lot of liquor. You'll be on your own even if _dai lo_ does agree to back you on this." 

"I see," he answers. The Wei clan's a small, fast-moving but wealthy organization, the same kind of establishment Stacker plans to model his own after. This particular venue is looking more like a dead end every second, however; there's no incentive or immediate payoff he can offer, and no collateral he's willing to post. He's already cycling through ways to end the conversation ('Thanks for your time;' 'Have a good day;' 'I'll see what I can do and reach out to you again;') when one of the triplets approaches the desk.

Even Liu looks surprised, but somewhat pleased. They have a quick exchange in Cantonese, the younger man's eyes flickering to Stacker several times before Liu gives him a thoughtful nod. 

"Mr. Pentecost," he says, "you might be in luck. Cheung says that he and his brothers can get you a meeting with a supplier who's been looking for a foothold into Chinatown. If you can secure the supply, I'm willing to make this investment."

"And the conditions for your cooperation?"

"I receive a fifteen percent cut of all profits." It's a surprisingly reasonable offer, as far as Stacker's concerned; he nods, prompting Liu to continue. "Cheung, Jin and Hu will work for you, but report back to me. These two conditions are not up for negotiation."

Hu makes a crack from his corner, prompting Ye to snort and Liu to roll his eyes briefly to the ceiling, expression a mix of fondness and resignation. "He says our shadow king has been getting territorial lately," he translates, "so it's just as well."

"And," Stacker asks Liu, "what is it you expect Cheung, Jin and Hu to do under my supervision?"

"Don't underestimate them, Marshall. They can do whatever needs to be done." The comment gets three proud grins; Liu smiles mildly and continues, "Your success is my success. I wouldn't set you up to fail."

* * *

Liu wasn't kidding. The triplets are just barely eighteen, tall and lanky, but they operate with the kind of efficiency Stacker hasn't seen in years. He has his own connections with law enforcement, but relies on the Weis to put him in touch first with Hannibal Chau, then Tendo Choi. The former has connections to vendors-- mostly bars and clubs looking to secure a pipeline of liquor for when Prohibition begins-- and the latter to producers in South America, Canada, the Caribbean.

"You meet a lot of people doing odd jobs in this town," Cheung had said, deflecting Stacker's question of how they'd come to be acquainted with people like Choi and Chau. 

They don't volunteer anything about themselves other than their ages and names; Sasha and Aleksis tell him it's unnerving once they've been brought on to handle Atlantica's security, but the couple isn't exactly forthcoming about themselves, either. 

It's a risk, trying to bring and hold together a group this disparate, but the parts of himself that had any doubt are quickly banished. Stacker Pentecost selects for loyalty first, and cooperation can come after. 

_We've done things we wouldn't have if we had other options,_ Jin'd said once, when he was completely trashed (courtesy of Aleksis) and neither brother was present to change the subject, _but if we're given an opportunity, we're not gonna fuck it up._

Stacker has every transaction recorded; it's not an easy thing to do with so much cash flowing through Atlantica, but none of it has ever gone missing, every expense accounted for down to the last cent. He trusts the brothers with an ever-expanding share of the work as they prove themselves fully capable of handling physical tasks and quick learners when it comes to negotiation and bookkeeping. It doesn't hurt that wherever one brother has trouble, another one would be able to compensate.

The original plan was for the Weis to help establish Atlantica, then return to work for Liu. The day Stacker finds himself delegating almost everything that has to be done between the triplets (by then able to effortlessly tell them apart, each of their particular strengths and weaknesses memorized), he asks if they'd like to stay on permanently.

They say yes.

* * *

That Mako (one of the quietest and most reserved ten-year-olds Stacker has ever known) adores the triplets comes as a surprise to him when she finally meets them. It doesn't take too much observation to figure out why.

They don't pry into her past, or question how she ended up with Pentecost. After their initial meeting, Mako would often find them on break, the three of them usually either eating or play-fighting. It always looks more like sparring, in a small clear space in the warehouse ringed by crates, but they _call it_ a game, so Stacker doesn't dispute it-- his only concern arises when Mako demands to be included and the triplets take her on with gusto. Stacker remembers how he and Luna used to play at fighting, pretending to be knights in armor and whacking each other with sticks. It usually ended in bruises or tears (very often both).

He shouldn't have worried; the brothers are careful, as gentle with Mako as they are with each other. The occasional bump or bruise aside, Mako picks up their style with frightening speed, building on the foundation that Stacker's already laid. 

It's not necessarily a good thing-- their next practice spar, Mako digs her heel into the top of his foot to loosen Stacker's grip, then jabs a vicious elbow into his ribs to escape the hold he'd grappled her into, all of it in combination with a headbutt to his chin. With her size and her age, it doesn't hurt very much, but he sits her down and has to explain why, exactly, a practice session with sensei isn't the best time to put those techniques to the test.

Jin and Hu look suitably cowed when he brings this up with them, the day after. Only Cheung's jaw slides forward, his expression defiant. "She asked us how we'd handle that situation in a fight," he says, "so we showed her."

"You can't deny it's effective," Hu pipes up, half-standing behind Cheung and looking ready to duck all the way back for cover. "Besides, formal training isn't everything."

It's the first time Stacker's expressed dissatisfaction with their conduct, the first time the three of them have seemed unsure of how they should respond to him. Predictably, they close ranks. "I'm not angry," Stacker tells them, "I'm only asking that you be more responsible with how you teach her. They are valuable skills."

"You don't want us to stop?" Jin probes, looking surprised.

Sighing, Stacker crosses his arms over his chest and shifts his weight. "Who taught the three of you to fight?"

The younger Weis seem to draw back, eyes on Cheung. "We taught ourselves," he answers, "Ye Wuming also helped us out after we joined up with Liu."

"Why did you learn?"

Cheung's eyes narrow, as if daring Stacker to pass judgment on them. "It was our only option."

"It's not, anymore. And it won't be again." He pretends not to notice the way all three brothers frown, brows drawing together, as if they can't quite seem to process what he means. "And I want Mako to understand that what you three paid for your experience is a price that will never fall on her head. Am I making myself clear?"

Stunned silence. 

"Yeah boss," Cheung says at last, looking over his shoulder to meet eyes with Jin, then Hu. "We understand."

* * *

After a certain hour, the triplets never let Stacker or Mako walk around Chinatown alone. For the first few months, he's pretty sure they're just paranoid-- after all, his and Mako's faces are relatively well-known in the neighborhood, usually met with civility if not outright friendliness and enthusiasm. 

The first time he really sees what they mean by 'it gets dangerous,' all four of them are together, the Weis walking half a block behind Stacker on his way to inspect a drophouse a few blocks away from the main office. He turns a corner, advances a few steps-- and freezes when a few shapes step out of a side alley and into the light of a streetlamp, six men with knives and baseball bats in their hands. 

"Your cash," one of them says.

Stacker's carrying way too much of it and probably looks the part, with his tailored suit and designer hat, leather briefcase held at his side. He's not intimidated but six against one, however untrained the six are, never ends well for the one. Prepared to drop the briefcase, already picking out the weakest of them, considering the ways in which he might be able to get out of this pinch with the least amount of damage-- Stacker very briefly forgets exactly who's accompanying him.

He remembers when Jin and Hu, both of them moving calmly and purposefully, flank him. Cheung steps in front, blocking Stacker from view. 

"Keep walking," Cheung says, voice a harsh deviance from its usual lighthearted tone, both younger brothers drawing closer to Stacker as the strangers start to spread out. "If you don't recognize us, you will soon."

The leader definitely recognizes the triplets, by name if not by face (three identical-looking men aren't easy to come by anywhere) and he eyes Cheung, catching the way his feet shift into a wider stance, hands flexing at his sides. "Think you're tough?" he sneers.

Cheung's lip curls. "You can see for yourself."

Stacker immediately feels hands on his shoulders and he's about to shrug them off before he realizes it's Jin and Hu, both of them pulling him back and away from their brother. The moment he's far enough away to not be a hindrance to their movements, the younger Weis step forward, spreading out to block anyone who might lunge for their boss. (Stacker finds himself weirdly touched, and also just a bit insulted; he can handle himself just fine in a fight.)

When the other group senses that the Weis have no intention of backing down, the brothers with their jaws clenched and fists ready to swing, the leader seems to weigh the stories he's heard about them with the five men at his own back. When he finally relents, signaling for his own group to disperse into the darkness, the triplets laugh.

"We could've won," Jin says, sounding almost disappointed that they didn't get an opportunity to show off, "it's been a while since we got to do anything like that."

"Sorry boss," Hu chimes in, throwing an arm over Cheung's shoulders and bumping his head against his big brother's, "but it's easier if it doesn't turn into a real fight. We know you could've whipped those saps."

Cheung finally adds, "But then we'd have to explain to Liu why we let you do it, instead of personally taking responsibility for our people."

"No offense taken," Stacker tells them, allowing Jin to walk ahead and lead the way while Cheung and Hu bring up the rear. His first thought is that at least Mako will be safe travelling with them, if the situation ever arises where he can't accompany her personally late at night. His second thought is that for all the times he'd felt like he was trying to coordinate a trio of unruly wild tigers, the Weis have never truly bared their fangs in his direction.

His third thought is that he'd like to see how it might feel, to be on the receiving end of that hostility-- the martial artist in him overrules the businessman for only a few seconds before he aggressively pushes it back.

* * *

"Some wild animals," Sasha says to Stacker one time, so late at night that it's actually early into the next morning, "they can only sleep when they feel very safe."

Stacker gives her a blank stare, pen hovering over his notebook. He squeezes his eyes shut, holds them closed for a moment before addressing her. "Excuse me?"

"Come see."

He's been staring at the ledger for about three hours now, trying to balance the checkbooks before the end of the year, so Stacker mentally awards himself this quick rest (and maybe a mug of coffee to get him through the last few pages). He follows Sasha into the break room, stopping beside her when she leans against the doorjamb and crosses her arms over her chest.

There's a long couch, the entirety of it occupied. Aleksis is snoring on one end, Jin's head tucked under his massive chin. Cheung's next down the line, one arm wrapped around Hu's shoulders, cheek smushed against the crown of his youngest brother's head. Stacker muffles a yawn into his fist, the end of it trailing off into an affectionate chuckle when he sees Mako, sprawled across all four of them, head in the crook of Aleksis's elbow and her feet thrown over Hu's lap.

"They are much too old for this," Sasha observes. 

Stacker sighs. It might be that he's still a bit tipsy from the company dinner they'd had to celebrate the upcoming New Year's Eve, or he's getting soft in his old age (thirty doesn't sound like much to most people, but Stacker's been feeling every one of his years ever since he'd started working alongside under-twenties), but the reflexive smile he has to fight back before Sasha sees doesn't leave him a whole lot of room for denial. 

He privately dismisses the creeping notion that he may have accidentally come to regard his employees as more than just a few useful hands at his disposal, and nods slowly. "Deliveries are finished?"

" _Da._ Through new year."

Stacker's silent for a few seconds, then he exhales slowly. "Let's give them a few more hours," he decides at last, "and tomorrow off."

"Today," Sasha points out.

"The rest of today," he amends.

"I will help finish calculations," Sasha says, leading the way back into his office, her boots heavy and full of purpose. "Maybe can set up camera before they all wake up."


End file.
